Sun of Shadows/Chapter 5
This is the fifth chapter in Sun of Shadows and the fifth in part one, Light. Without Wings Geb watched the young Elm of Light as they walked. He didn't seem to mind walking, his wings were neatly tucked in. They had left the ruins long ago, but the boy was still holding Four-Leaf in his arms and hadn't turned around to them once. He didn't seem to care much about them, Geb had noticed. But why? They were the first members of other tribes who had set foot in this place in centuries. Certainly the first ones this boy had ever seen. And yet he treated them... not rudely exactly, but he was far less surprised than Geb had expected. Were all Light Elmen like him? Geb looked at Karzelek, who, as usual, let himself be carried by Boulder. Empty and lonely he seemed without Four-Leaf in his arms. "Are you alright?", Geb whispered to him so that the Light Elm wouldn't notice. "It's fine," Karzelek said. Of course he knew what Geb meant. "After all, Four-Leaf helps me when I'm scared too." Geb paused. "What should he be scared of? Us?" He had to think about how Karzelek had been afraid of Geb when they'd first met. But these were completely different circumstances. The stranger, as far as he could tell, seemed to be doing just fine. "I don't know," Karzelek admitted. "But he's calmer when he has Four-Leaf. And there aren't any Shadows here... so I'm fine enough." "Tell me if you need Four-Leaf," he said anyway, before he said goodbye and quickened his pace. Soon he was walking next to the Light Elm who, still, hardly noticed him. Geb hesitated. Could he even talk to him? How did one behave towards a Light Elm? Were there certain rules? Probably not if no one had been here in years. "So, what's your name?" "Hyperion." Hyperion. How noble that sounded - just like he had expected from an Elm of Light. He himself couldn't keep up with that. "I'm Geb." He was ignored again, the boy just kept walking. Was there anything he was interested in? Yes, the ruins had fascinated him! And Geb felt the same - the mere thought of the old buildings made him tremble with excitement. Maybe they could start a conversation that way. "You knew a lot about the buildings earlier," Geb began. "Did you find that out yourself?" "I discovered the ruins by accident," Hyperion explained. He seemed happy that Geb had asked a question that actually interested him. Apparently, there were really only the two extremes for him. "That was a few years ago. But I have come here again and again and have analyzed the paintings and writings. The Ancient Civilization has written down amazingly much before they became Elmen. I've found their stories and records of their everyday life, everything you can imagine." He grimaced. "The light blue Elmin fell on a pile and destroyed a lot." Geb felt a sting. He hadn't known that. "Her name is Iris," he said. "I'm sure she's sorry." Only then did he start thinking about the boy's choice of words. Couldn't he just have said Sky Elmin? "She's from the Tribe of Sky, from Xiro, just like me." "You're a Sky Elm?" "What? No. I'm from the Earth Tribe." Hyperion cocked his head. "You said you are from the Tribe of Sky." "Oh!" Geb realized belatedly that his own choice of words had confused Hyperion as well. "No, I meant that we're both from Xiro. Karzelek too, he's an Ore Elm." For once, Hyperion actually looked at him. "I should have known immediately. Of course, you cannot be a Sky Elm at all. Nothing about you matches what I learned." Geb had to laugh. "True, I'm almost the opposite of her tribe." When Hyperion blinked in confusion, Geb decided he'd rather change the subject. "Are there companions in your tribe?" "No," Hyperion replied. "But I've heard that the tribes have them. Do you need them? It must be exhausting to have to look after an animal. All the things you can do wrong..." He had never looked at it like that before - but only because he had never thought that way. "Boulder is a part of the family," he said proudly. "Just like every companion. This bond is even stronger than that between siblings." Another thing he could ask Hyperion about. "Do you have any?" "What?" "Siblings." "I don't understand the question." Geb stopped short. But then he remembered that his own tribe couldn't really contribute when it came to parents. Maybe the concept of siblings didn't exist within the Light Tribe? "It's okay," he said. "That's what it's called when parents have more than one child." Hyperion looked like he wanted to reply something, but he didn't come that far. "And? Exciting conversation?" Iris had appeared beside them - and had frightened Hyperion. He flinched, releasing Four-Leaf, who bleated insultedly and ran back to Karzelek. Geb groaned inwardly. Were his advances now all in vain? "It's okay," he said again, before turning to Iris. "I just asked him about his name." "I see." She actually seemed a bit guilty herself when she saw Hyperion walking with them in silence. "And?" Geb answered for their new acquaintance. "Hyperion." "Sounds noble," she said, looking at the Light Elm again. "It's fine if I shorten it, right? I don't really do formalities. How about Perry?" "Perry," the boy repeated like a foreign word. He mumbled it several times, then nodded. "A nice name. Thank you." "Uh, no problem." Iris looked up at Geb. "And other than that? Everything okay here?" "Sure." He shrugged, but couldn't help but sound worried. "Why do you ask? Something wrong?" "Everything's fine," she said a little too quickly. "I just thought I'd see how you're doing." "I understand your concern," Hyperion - Perry - said soberly. "Lumeon is powerful and intimidating." From Iris's expression, Geb realized that Perry had hit the nail on the head. He, too, felt a little queasy thinking about the greatest of all Keepers, but he had been able to distract himself well so far. Apparently unlike Iris. "What is Lumeon like?", he asked. "Like your legends tell it." That didn't really help Iris. Of course, Lumeon wasn't harmless and unimposing in her tribe's legends either. "How does your tribe live, exactly?", she asked instead. "You'll see it soon. It isn't much farther." Geb curiously followed the boy, who meanwhile had quickened his pace himself. Indeed, they soon left the forest behind - and the trees cleared the way for an incredible sight. The mountain they had seen from afar was much closer now. A palace had been built in and around the rock, with high towers and several open bridges. It reminded Geb a little of the Sky Tribe, Caelus's palace had been constructed in a similar way. Still, something was different, though Geb couldn't put it into words. Was it the color? No, it was a marble very similar to the Claws. The size? Sure, the Light Elmen were bigger than the Tribe of Sky. And yet... Beside him, he sensed Iris's surprise, surely she had noticed the similarities as well. However, when she spoke, she sounded disappointed. "Aren't there any birds here?" Geb paused. That was what had unsettled him subconsciously! The airspace between the Claws had been full of birds, wild animals and companions alike. Everything had been so alive and colorful... and here it was the exact opposite. The palace seemed almost lonely without the movements in the air around it. "There are owls and hawks living in the towers," Perry replied. "You don't see them very often, of course." "And the Elmen?" Sedna had caught up with them, they had stopped by now. "What about them?" "We don't have much of a reason to fly," Perry said with a shrug. "Mostly we take the bridges." Iris stared at him dumbfounded. Geb could guess what she was thinking: Who needs a reason to fly? But she kept the thought to herself. "Well then, let's go." Perry kept leading the way without noticing the sharp tone of her voice. Geb followed him, relieved to find that it was actually a mountain road wide enough for Boulder - even more than three times as wide! He was just about to ask what the Tribe of Light needed such a wide road for, then he remembered. Lumeon. He shuddered and moved on. Iris preferred to fly beside them on Shimmer's back. As a result, she was naturally much faster than them, so she moved in wide circles to stay at a height with her friends. Again and again she threw glances to Perry, and the message was clear: you could do the same. But Perry stayed where he was and said nothing. They reached a gate, behind which a wooden bridge led to the main part of the palace. A small building next to the gate had probably once served to control the visitors, but now it was vacant. For countless years, judging from its condition - but Geb knew why. It was just another sign that no one but the Elmen of Light had entered this place for ages. They continued over the bridge that didn't groan under Boulder's weight. Many of the planks looked like they had been recently redone... what a strange contrast that was compared to the cabin earlier. No one said anything, they were all too tense in the face of the meeting that was imminent. The closer they came to Lumeon, the more nervous Geb became. What if he doesn't approve of what we did? That we want to interfere in the prophecy? He shook his head. We aren't interfering. We're just accelerating it to save Elmen. Lumeon will understand. Now they had reached the palace itself. It loomed above them, so even Perry looked tiny and insignificant. Everything here had to have been built for Lumeon, Geb suddenly realized. Even his own tribe was nothing compared to him. Their footsteps echoed through the huge corridors while Perry guided them confidently. Once again, there were murals that filled the entire height of the room and mainly represented Lumeon. It must have taken years to draw them. But even at their own height, there was something to see: Smaller drawings of the Tribe of Light itself and doors barely big enough for Lumeon's paw. So he didn't seem to have access to all parts of the palace after all. To reach him, however, they had to keep following the main hallway. Karzelek looked around nervously, while Sedna only frowned. She didn't seem to care much for the appearance of this tribe. And Iris and Shimmer still hadn't landed, like Gerra's palace at the Fire Tribe, these halls were made for flying. Even Geb wondered why Perry and the other members of his tribe didn't seem to take advantage of this, they had to be much faster that way. Astonished, he also noticed the orbs that apparently consisted of pure light and illuminated the corridors for them. Just when he was starting to wonder where everyone else was, a door opened and two Light Elmen came out. They were older than Perry, perhaps in their mid-thirties, but they looked very much like him: they, too, had white skin with golden hair and markings and expensive clothes like his. Only their wings drooped a little, Geb thought. The two of them stared at the group in a mixture of horror and pure bafflement. Perry greeted them with a hint of a bow. "Good morning, Sulis. Istanu." Only now did Sulis, the woman, catch herself enough for words. "Are these Elmen?", she asked, aghast. "Elmen of other tribes? What... how..." The man eyed them suspiciously. "Does Lumeon know about this?" "We're on our way to him right now," Iris said. She had noticed the commotion and landed. The adults exchanged a look before Istanu spoke. "Let us know what Lumeon thinks about it. Surely he too is aware of what the presence of these children here means." "Unlike you, who will not reach our vision for centuries," Sulis added, before the two went down the hall in the opposite direction. "Someone here thinks pretty highly of themselves," Iris muttered as soon as they were out of earshot. "If you ask me, that didn't sound like Lumeon has a high opinion of us," Sedna said. "Are you sure we shouldn't speak to the chosen one already? Or do you just not have any idea where he is?" Perry kept walking without turning around. "Lumeon can judge that better than me. Istanu is right, he'll want to hear about you anyway." "It's his prophecy after all," Karzelek said. "Hyperion knows more about this place than we do. I'm sure he knows what he's doing." "If you say so," Sedna replied. "But don't tell me later that I didn't say anything." They dropped the topic. Her words had made Geb ponder: What were they getting themselves into? Every living Elm only knew Lumeon from stories. And even if they were true - would Lumeon be ready to help them? He'll understand, he repeated silently to distract himself. He has to understand. What Geb thought to be just another wall at the end of the corridor turned out to be an open balcony as he approached, big enough for Lumeon's massive body. Instead of a breathtaking view, however, one could see nothing but the rock face that Geb had seen from afar. "Does Lumeon like to stare at walls?" Iris asked, amused. Perry sounded completely matter-of-factly. "No. This place helps him reach the higher floors if he doesn't wish to fly. There are stairs for the Elmen too, over there." Geb followed his gaze and noticed a staircase that ran along the outside wall of the building, fortunately with a railing. Without it, even ten shadows wouldn't have gotten him up there. Still, there was a problem. "Boulder won't make it up there." "Can you leave him here?", Perry asked, but Geb immediately shook his head. Relieved and a little surprised, he saw that Perry nodded understandingly. "Four-Leaf and I could stay here with him," Karzelek suggested. He likely had little desire to meet Lumeon, a Keeper whose legends he wasn't familiar with. This time it was Sedna who refused. "No offense, but I don't trust this tribe. Who knows what will happen if we leave you here alone." Iris grinned. "You and I could talk to Lumeon. It's becoming a habit, don't you think?" A bit guiltily, Geb thought of how it had always been the girls who had talked to the chiefs on their travels. Even if he liked to entrust these things to Sedna, it was clear to him: "Either all of us go or no one." Perry watched the exchange with interest and waited until he didn't interrupt anyone. "I can bring Lumeon here, if you like." Then he'll maybe like us even less. But Geb could feel how grateful he was to Perry for the suggestion. "That would be great." The Light Elm nodded. "Wait here." Then he went to take the stairs. "What a waste," Iris muttered, staring after him. Geb had no doubt that she knew how to use his wings. "I'm still not comfortable with the matter," said Sedna and glanced up again and again. She cared least for the Light Tribe out of all of them, so Geb could understand her displeasure. "I don't know what to make of the Elmen here." "Perry is alright," Geb said. "We just don't know enough about the Tribe of Light. Surely there are good reasons for all of this." Iris stared at him. "Good reasons not to use the wings you have? Please." She crossed her arms. "And if you ask me, Perry's the strangest of them all. Can you figure him out? Because I can't." Geb grimaced. This wasn't going the way he had imagined. "Let's talk to Lumeon first. That's what we came here for." "And we aren't backing down this close to the finish," Karzelek agreed. "I don't think we could do that anyway," Iris said. "Do you hear that too?" The friends fell silent and listened. But Geb shook his head slowly, his hearing wasn't nearly as good as Iris's. She opened her mouth to answer - but then he saw what was coming. With a single set against the rock face and a turn that made him land smoothly on all fours, he suddenly stood before them: the tallest lion Geb had ever seen. He knew lions from Sunstone, some Elmen there had such an animal as their companion, so they were much larger than wild specimens. But Lumeon surpassed them all, for he was indeed so huge that he comfortably filled the palace's hallway. He couldn't match Terrai's enormous size, but he didn't have to do that to be intimidating. His coat was bright white, with no trace of dirt, and every hair of his golden mane seemed to be a ray of light that enveloped Lumeon's face, so it didn't cast a single shadow in an kind of unsettling way. The huge wings he carried like all Light Elmen were neatly folded close to his body. With another graceful movement he lay down - still far from being at eye level with the friends, but it was a start. He gazed down at them from his warm golden eyes. "Welcome," a just as warm voice sounded in their heads as Lumeon let out a deep purr. "I am Lumeon, the Keeper of Light. How can I help you?" Category:Chapters Category:EE3 Chapters